Swallowing Head And Neck Cancer: From prevention to treatment

This panel will provide an update on the latest advances in treating chronic cough from the laryngology delegation of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.  

Our first set of objectives with focus on discussing interdisciplinary approaches, medical/pharmacologic management, and the behavioral therapy for treating chronic cough. We will discuss how to best implement these treatment strategies and how to avoid common pitfalls.

Our second set of objectives will deal with discussing current interventions we utilize to treat chronic cough. These will include vocal fold medialization and the superior laryngeal nerve block. We will discuss expanding indications, technical optimization, and expected outcomes of each treatment.

Our third and final set of objectives will focus on discussing novel innovations in treating chronic cough. We will discuss cough desensitization therapy, vibrotactile stimulation, and selective laryngeal cryotherapy of the supraglottis.

In recent years, the treatment of Zenker diverticulum (ZD) and other hypopharyngeal diverticula has underwent substantial transformation. Two primary endocopic platforms exist for treatment, the flexible approach allowing for division of the common wall with monopolar cautery, and the rigid approach where the common wall division can be stapler- or laser-assisted. However, refinement in instrumentation and surgical technique in both platforms have led to improvements in treatment outcomes and treatment-associated morbidity. The latest iteration of the flexible approach, (Z-POEM), utilizes submucosal tunneling and myotomy is ideal for patients that cannot rigidly exposed and wish to avoid open surgery. On the other hand, rigid ZD surgery can now resect much of the cricopharyngeus muscle as well as the diverticulum pouch with complete closure of the resulting mucosal defect(M-TORD). This leads to fluoroscopic and functional outcomes most similar to open ZD diverticulectomy without the morbidity of the transcervical approach. The otolaryngologist-head and neck surgeon is well suited to offer either flexible, rigid, and open surgical approaches to patients tailored to their individual presentation. The lecture will utilize high quality videos of the surgical techniques to educate the audience and provide a pearls for surgeons looking to offer new techniques and avoid pitfalls.